Sundance

SUNDANCE ANNOUNCES CREATIVE PRODUCING INITIATIVE

At a lunch here at the Kimball Art Center at the base of Main Street, the Sundance Institute announced their new “Creative Producing Initiative” today. “To work effectively with filmmakers, producers need an opportunity to develop their own skills and voices. The Creative Producing Initiative is designed to develop a producer’s creative instincts in the scripting and editing stages and to evolve their communication and problem-solving skills at all stages of realizing a project,” said Michelle Satter, Director, Sundance Institute Feature Film Program. Producer Paul Mezey (Sugar, Maria Full of Grace) gave the keynote speech, and he pledged his support […]

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 20, 2008 Sundance
SUNDANCE FROM THE INSIDE

Over at the Film in Focus site, filmmaker Craig Zobel gives us five tips for making it through Sundance alive. I’m going to meditate on his tip number three — “Don’t Get All Stress Out Over the Parties” — rather than stewing over the invites I didn’t get. From Zobel: If you haven’t heard, the nightly parties at Sundance are real hard to get into. Even the fancy/rich/important have to stand in line sometimes. (For, like, two minutes. But still.) Let me go ahead and tell you what you are missing. A chocolate fondue fountain that has white chocolate on […]

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 19, 2008 Sundance
THE DARK SIDE OF THE SUNDANCE…

was seen at last night’s black-out on Main Street. Over at Movie City Indie, Ray Pride has photographic documentation, like the picture of his I am posting here.

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 19, 2008 Sundance
“FROZEN RIVER” writer-director, Courtney Hunt

Ten percent more money wouldn’t have made that big a difference, but 10 percent more preproduction time would have helped. Our funding showed up so late in the game that nothing could be nailed down until two weeks before we started shooting. Casting and location scouting was last minute. Luckily my producers and crew were intrepid so we just marched on. Rehearsal with actors was minimal. I met most of the people in the smaller roles for the first time on the day they arrived on the set. The only thing that saved us was the script. The time spent […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Jan 18, 2008 Sundance Responses
“ADVENTURES OF POWER” writer-director, Ari Gold

After 13 months of shooting in four states, a broken arm, lightning strikes, a once-in-a-generation power failure at our power-plant location (“stay here, you’re slightly more likely to survive if it explodes”), I should want at least 11 percent more money to make the movie, to deal with these contingencies, or else I’d be wise to force myself to write 99 percent less insanity into my script so I could make something simple. But since all that’s past, I’d say if I wished I had 10 percent more of something, it would be peace of mind. I wasted a huge […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Jan 18, 2008 Sundance Responses
“CHOKE” writer-director, Clark Gregg

It’s very tempting to go for the obvious answer and say money, since most of the elements that one would kill to have 10 percent more of could be had with a little more money. Money would be the universal gift card with which one could purchase delicious items like more shooting days or film stock or editing time. I’m still in post so even thinking of a card that could buy me more mix time or music licensing is getting me a little worked up. But money seems like an easy answer, so I’ll try to think outside the […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Jan 18, 2008 Sundance Responses
“ANYWHERE, U.S.A.” co-writer-director, Chusy (Anthony Haney-Jardine)

The question isn’t fair as it relates to my production. I don’t wish I had 10 percent more of anything. I deliberately set out to make a film without expectations. Expectations are what thwarted any creative impulse I’d had in the past. Instead I relied on whatever I found before me. It is no accident that our production company’s name is Found Films. From the get-go we knew we had severe limitations: intellectual, financial, technological and with regards to professional talent; so instead, we embraced those limitations, almost with glee. No interchangeable lenses? No problem. Let’s embrace the aesthetic and […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Jan 18, 2008 Sundance Responses
“A COMPLETE HISTORY OF MY SEXUAL FAILURES” co-writer-director, Chris Waitt

I made a documentary where I tried to interview my ex-girlfriends to find out why they dumped me. I wish 10 percent more of them had agreed to talk to me. In fact I wish 50 percent more had talked to me. But they didn’t. So for a couple of months I wandered ’round, scratched my head and tried to think of ways to persuade them. When I couldn’t persuade them I tried to come up with other things to film. As a result I think I ended up doing a lot of naval gazing, or in my case, a […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Jan 18, 2008 Sundance Responses
“MOMMA’S MAN” writer-director, Azazel Jacobs

I have been thinking about this question for a couple days now and I’m stumped. I’m really happy with Momma’s Man and I think extra cash, time… a bit extra of anything could have just fucked it up. Whatever limitations there were — and I had an enormous amount of freedom on this one — were helpful as far as I can see. Sorry if this wasn’t the answer you were looking for, but for me it’s the truth. [PREMIERE SCREENING: Friday, Jan. 18, 11:30 am — Library Center Theatre, Park City]

By Jason Guerrasio on Jan 18, 2008 Sundance Responses
“WHERE IN THE WORLD IS OSAMA BIN LADEN?” co-writer-director, Morgan Spurlock

If I could have had 10 percent more of anything it would have been days off! We worked 6 and 7-day weeks on this film ever since production started in May 2006 and haven’t stopped. And believe me, looking for the most wanted man on earth and traveling for months at a time to some of the most dangerous places in the world (all while having a pregnant wife at home), is not the best recipe for a stress-free job. [PREMIERE SCREENING: Monday, Jan. 21, 8:30 pm — Library Center Theatre, Park City]

By Jason Guerrasio on Jan 18, 2008 Sundance Responses

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